His Last Vow
by stjtiger
Summary: Conclusion to the His Last series. The Porters bring Henry with them back to Africa, but things do not always turn out the way they seem. Facing the battle against sexism proves to be a challenge for young Kala. A short glossary of the British slang used can be found at the end of chapter 6.
1. Homecoming

Homecoming

The trip back to Africa seemed longer than the initial trip to England. A combination of Henry's constant seasickness and the number of storms encountered certainly took its toll on everyone aboard. One evening after a series of puking spells, Henry had gone back to his room to lay down. "Mother, I think I'll go check on Henry, if you don't mind. He was still looking especially green when he headed to his room."

"Alright, don't be too long, dear. I'm sure Henry needs his rest."

Kala traveled through the vast corridors to the young man's dorm. "Henry, it's Kala. May I come in?" she called as she knocked on the wooden door.

"Of course. Come in."

She entered through the doorway, shutting the door behind her. Henry sat up against the bed's headboard. "I just wanted to make sure you were feeling alright. You didn't look so good when you left."

"Ah, yes. Lying down has certainly done me some good. That look on your face says you have something else on your mind."

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Kala. Come sit," he motioned with his hand, gesturing to a spot near him on the bed.

Kala hesitated, but accepted the invitation. "Talk to me."

"We've just been spending a lot of time together, and I've just been thinking."

"Thinking about?"

"Things I shouldn't be thinking about at this point."

"Such as?" he giggled.

"Oh, you know. Physical things," she whispered slightly embarrassed, like the thought of it was a rare taboo.

"You act like it's unheard of to be physical with someone outside of marriage. My friends almost all had mistresses and prosts."

"Prosts?"

"Prostitutes. Women who get paid for their services. Actually, it's funny because I've been thinking, too," Henry smirked, beginning to lean into her and bring his hand to her face.

She placed her hand between them, "Are you sure about this? Mother always said to be weary of men. Particularly, those who jump into… physical relationships."

 _Of course, your_ feminist _mother said to be "weary of men"._ Henry thought with slight aggravation coming to Henry's features, then quickly washing away back to a look of sultry seduction. "Dear, if I wasn't sure about us, do you honestly think I would've agreed to come? Besides, haven't you ever been taught to give a man what he wants?" The thought bounced around in Kala's head for a moment. Before she could reply, Henry's lips were on top of hers. After a few seconds, the hand that had been pushing him away was grasping for whatever loose material that it could to bring him closer. It did not take long for Henry to lay Kala beneath him, her legs instinctively wrapping around his waist through the constraining dress. Henry sat up a moment to begin the process of removing the various clothing items.

Kala paused him for a moment. "One condition. Nobody hears about this," her words seemed tense and desperate.

"Of course, Darling. You have nothing to worry about. Now relax, Kala. I promise I'll take it slow."

Kala grabbed the back of his neck, pulling him down to her. "Don't make promises you can't keep. Now take me like one of your filthy British prosts," she whispered back. Henry smiled into her shoulder, pulling back the neckline of her dress and nipping at every inch that he could reach. Quiet moans filled the room for most of the night.

The next day, Kala awoke to numerous red marks and small mild bruises covering her body. She began looking around the room and noticed that it was mostly Henry's belongings that surrounded her. After going through the process of dressing, Kala met Henry on deck as land came into sight. Seeing the rolling hills of forest and jungle, Henry was taken in awe. Jonathan came up beside him, "Home, sweet home," he sighed. Upon docking, they were all warmly greeted by Monsieur Dumont. "Bonjour, Porters! I assume your trip went well?"

Jane being first off of the ship, provided an enthusiastic reply. "Very much so. In fact, we brought home a guest. Monsieur Dumont, this is Henry Wesson, a young man Kala met in London."

"Ah, Mr. Wesson, I'm confident you'll make a wonderful addition to our little jungle community."

"Well, I would sure hope so." Henry set a bag down on the dock, taking the older gentleman's hand in a firm handshake. "I don't plan on going anywhere." He picked the bag back up and continued to follow Tarzan into the jungle on the long hike to the treehouse. Henry quickly developed a strong admiration for the English architecture built into the tree. Once he entered the home, he acknowledged the layout of the rooms and furniture. "What a very nice home you've got here!"

"I said the same thing when I saw it. Tarzan's parents built it. Of course, there was a lot of cleaning and preparation that had to be done before it was inhabitable again. You see, Tarzan's parents were killed a long time ago and Tarzan was taken in by the local gorilla troop. The house was abandoned and soon overtaken with vines and wildlife. But it just needed a little elbow grease is all."

"Yes, I'd heard rumors of Tarzan's upbringing. I'd say a job well done, Mrs. Porter."

"Why thank you, Henry."

A majority of the day was spent unpacking and replacing items in their respective homes. The family all changed back into their jungle garb, the men their loincloths, Jane her modest yellow shirt and green skirt. Henry's jaw almost hit the floor when he saw Kala's light brown crop top and green sarong. Kala could not help but to comment, "You may not want to leave your mouth hanging open like that, Mr. Wesson. You may catch more than just flies."

Once a majority of the luggage was put away, Jane shooed them away. "Go. Show Henry around. Introduce him to some of your friends. I can handle things here."

Kala nodded a smile and started to take Henry by the arm. "That's not what you're wearing, is it?" She referred to his much nicer tan trousers, white dress shirt, and matching tan vest partially covering his dark blue necktie.

"Dear, it's all I've got."

"Look at what everyone else is wearing compared to you."

"I see your point, but I don't exactly have a loin cloth on hand."

"I'm sure I can fix that right quick."

She started to prance over to her father before Henry stopped her in her path. "I see what you're going to do and I'm not going to borrow from your father."

"Then at least lose the tie and vest. This is the jungle for God's sakes, not a bloody garden party." He pulled at the knot, loosening the tie to yank it over his head and peeled off his waistcoat. Leaving his collar popped up around his neck, he followed Kala to one of the vines hanging around the treehouse rolling up his sleeves in the process. "You ready?"

"Ready for whaaaaaat?!" He hadn't finished his sentence before Kala had taken Henry by the waist and flew off on the vine. Jane simply chuckled at the pair as she continued resetting her home. "Was this part of the curriculum at finishing school?" He shook out for fear of being dropped.

"No, Jungle University. Don't worry, we do this all the time. It's way quicker than walking."

They landed on a branch. "Where are we?"

"Look down," she smiled. They both found a family of gorillas eating and playing. "Come on. There's a few you should meet." She started gliding down the tree branch to the ground.

"A few gorillas?" He started to follow her, but soon slipped like a deer on ice. Henry fell to the ground, soon joined by Kala who gracefully finished her slide down the branch.

"Are you ok?"

"Yes, fine." He rubbed the soreness from his head. The gorillas began surrounding them. "Um, you're friends with gorillas?"

"Of course. Even Darwin once said a man's friendships are one of the best measures of his worth."

"I don't think animals are what he had in mind, Dear."

One of the older gorillas ran through the crowd embracing Kala, cooing her gorilla grunts and Kala returned them. "Henry, this is Terk. She grew up with my father." Kala continued to chatter in gorilla and soon an elephant sauntered up to the group, his age showing through his more prominent wrinkles. "This is Tantor."

"He looks like he's getting old."

"Yeah, he's getting up there," she sighed petting Tantor's side. "But he's still as reliable as the sun. You want to see the waterfall?"

"You have a waterfall?"

"Come on. Tantor, you want to take us to the waterfall?" He let out a blow, bending down for them to climb onto his back.

The journey drug on and the pair made easy small talk. "I must say, you truly do have a beautiful place here."

"Why thank you. I like it much better than London."

"What's wrong with London?"

"Too many people. Not enough action."

"It seems rather peaceful to me."

"You've spent a day here. I've spent eighteen years here. Give it time. We get quite a few outsiders looking for pelts or diamonds or even just to see if the legends are true."

"Must be _agony_ to get visitors out here." His tone reeked of sarcasm.

"You don't understand. Those outsiders seek to harm our friends and our home. Sometimes even our way of life."

"Did it ever occur to you that at one point your family were the outsiders? Your father's parents must have hunted for food until the jungle claimed them. The gorillas took in your father, but I'm sure it wasn't without _some_ resistance. He was eventually accepted but then your mother came. Surely to the gorillas, she was a threat. At least the man she brought with her was. And then your father integrated her into the family. But even then, she still had her strange ways. She was still an outsider. Thanks to your father's protective efforts, your family has been more commonly accepted throughout the jungle. If it wasn't for your father, your mother would still just be an outsider looking in."

"How do you know so much about my family?"

"I'm a reporter, Kala. Or at least I was. I did my research. Not that a little jungle girl would know anything of research."

"Ugh! Excuse me!" Kala twisted in her seat to look him in the eye. "Your research should've shown that my mother and grandfather were both respected scientists who came here with the intent of studying gorillas."

"Your grandfather maybe. He threw away everything he had trying to research these beasts looking for Darwin's 'missing link'. Your mother was a tagalong - a wannabe. She wanted to be just like your grandfather and struggled to do that in England. She was accepted into Cambridge purely because of her father. When her father got the opportunity to study gorillas she had to practically beg him to let her go with him."

"And she learned more from him than any other professor she had ever encountered. Both of them have widely taught me in scientific theories of several different fields."

"Your mother wasn't even allowed to be awarded a degree. Cambridge, with their reputation on the line, was not about to present any woman a degree no matter what her field of study."

"I still learned more from her than any textbook ever could teach me. Believe me, I've looked. Do not question my knowledge of research in _any_ aspect _ever_ again," she snapped.

Henry was taken aback. Never had he heard a woman defend herself in such a way. A way that made him respect her to a further extent. She was not just asking for that respect, she was demanding it. He swallowed hard, "My apologies, Kala. I'm not accustomed to such driven young women as that in your family."

"Flattery will get you nowhere here, Henry." She gained her footing and leaped into the trees. Henry watched from the elephant's back as she swung ahead in the vines, her green wrap-around skirt flapping in the breeze.

When he reached the waterfall, Kala sat on the riverbank, knees curled up to her chest. Henry sat down beside her, his feet almost dipping into the water. "Kala, I didn't mean to offend you. And what you called flattery, I meant every word of. Women back in England do nothing but cook and clean and attend parties. Here you are, swinging from vines and reciting quotes from great scientists. You are much more ambitious than any woman I had ever hoped to meet. Of course, I had heard how your mother's ambitions led her to study at Cambridge. But I knew women like that were few and far between. You were never in the plan until I met you and got to know you. It was then that I decided that I would do whatever I could do to stay in your life."

"What did you expect? The perfect little housewife?"

"I wasn't sure what to expect. The first woman in Cambridge reproduced with a wild man she found in the jungle. You must understand how that could have played out many different ways. I'll tell you what I wasn't expecting was a beautiful, intelligent young woman who wanted more than to just fit in." She allowed a smile to bless her features before leaning forward and diving head first into the river. He waited for her to come back up for air, but she never did. After a minute or so, Henry began panicking. "Kala? Kala? This isn't funny any more!" She popped out of the water just enough to pull him in with her, both coming up for air immediately after, Kala laughing, Henry gagging on water. "What were you thinking?! You nearly killed me!"

"Loosen up. Have some fun."

"These clothes are ruined!" He began the swim to shore, followed closely behind by Kala.

"I told you to wear something else."

"It's hard telling what sort of man eating beasts live in this water!"

"Just the crocs and Father moved them down river years ago. Do you really think I would've jumped in with something that could kill me?"

Henry slicked back his wet hair. "You never know. You might've taken crocodile wrestling in that Jungle University of yours."

"Oh no. Father would never let us do that. Mainly by Mother's request, but you know. That may be something that you'll just have to learn to do one day."

"I would certainly hope not. I don't know the first thing about the creatures. Why would I do that anyway?"

"Well, as you know, Father is Lord of the jungle. Obviously, he's going to retire or die at some point. There are two obvious options to fill his shoes. The first option is Jonathan simply because he would be the next 'man' of the family. He has been groomed since day one to take Father's place. He trains regularly to keep a good physique no matter how unnecessary and is learning how to handle scuffles between animals. The second option would be whoever marries me. If I don't marry, I receive the title. Even in the 'laxed jungle, it's a man's world," she sighed in frustration.

"I'm sure it was just tradition taking over. I don't know how the gorillas are but that's how things work in England. Women are much too busy with housework to squabble over legal matters." As soon as the words left his mouth, Henry wished he could take them back.

"Well in case you haven't noticed, this isn't England! We can't separate based on gender. Anything Mother and I do, Father and Jonathan are also very capable of doing."

"Well, I will not be forced to perform such demeaning tasks. Not when I have two lovely women who should be more than capable of knowing their place."

"Surely you can suck up your pride and at least experience our lives. Even Father does laundry almost as much as I go out hunting."

"You must not eat much then, cause the only places you women are good for are in the kitchen and in bed. You're not meant to hunt. You're not even meant to have a formal education."

"And you are? All that you've proved this afternoon is that you are nothing but a misanthropist simpleton who believes if you do anything different from England, you're a savage and need retaught how to act! You've proved that you're not the man I thought you were!" She ran off into the jungle, tears threatening to run down her face.

"No, Kala! Don't leave me here! I didn't mean it like that! I'm sorry! Don't leave me in the middle of the jungle! Kala!" He tried to follow her so not to get lost, but soon lost track of all of her twists and turns.


	2. What Have I Done?

_**What Have I Done**_

Kala sprinted through the jungle back to the tree house. She quickly met her mother when nearing their treetop home. "Kala? What's the hurry? Where's Henry?"

"Oh, you mean the chauvinist imbecile? He's back at the waterfall to my knowledge," she choked back the tears. Jane took Kala in her arms, doing her best to comfort the younger woman.

"Darling, what happened?" She stroked strands of hair out of the girl's face.

"First he called me a 'little jungle girl', implying that I was ignorant. Then he said women are too busy with housework for legal squabbles. He then went on to say that women are only good in the kitchen and in bed. And then he informed me that I wasn't meant to have a formal education."

Jane huffed a puff of air. "I'm not going to tell you you're wrong in being upset. I would've been just as angry. What you do need to understand is that that is the culture that he was raised in. Women are viewed as inferior to men in England, which is why so many of my exploits are so legendary and well known. I broke through barriers that had previously been hardly questioned. I can't promise that you'll break through to him anytime soon, but you brought him out here because you saw something in him that you just couldn't leave behind. I felt the same thing when I decided to stay here. If I wasn't confident your father and I would work through thick and thin, you wouldn't be here. I feel like if he stays here and learns what life is like out here, he will turn the other leaf. I don't know how long it'll take, but he'll come around."

"But Mother, he called me stupid. No more than a housewife who doesn't know her place. A… a…"

"A woman as known in English society. Dear, I know that he sounds like an absolute baboon to you, but that was the way he was raised. You were most likely much smarter than a majority of those girls in your class. That much you should not be concerned about. You shouldn't base your worth on how well you can pour a cup of tea, and neither should he. Rather base it on your vast knowledge of science, mathematics and culture. Your ability to carry on an intelligent conversation with the most knowledgeable men and women you would ever meet. Lord knows you carry that much." Her tone intensified with each statement. "You're no ignorant jungle girl, you are an intelligent, strong, sophisticated young woman who knows what she wants. If nothing else, I did make sure of that much. Don't let one man change that. Okay?" Her tone began to calm once more. "I will talk to him when he gets back. Until then, why don't you go see what your brother's up to."

"Thank you, Mother," she sniffled.

As Kala was leaving, Tarzan was swinging in. "Where is she going? Where's Henry?"

"She is going to find Jonathan. She and Henry had a bit of a spat earlier and she left him at the waterfall. Would you be a dear and go get him?" Tarzan leaped into the trees, soon returning with the young man in question. "Tarzan, why don't you go check on the children. I need to have a little chat with Mr. Wesson. Henry, come with me," she sighed, leading him up into the tree house. She pulled two chairs closer together by the table, signaling for him to sit in one while she sat opposite of him. "Kala told me what was said. To be quite frank, I expected more from you."

"Mrs. Porter, I told her repeatedly how sorry I was. I never meant for it to sound as bad as it did."

Jane put her index finger to his lips, quieting him. "Henry, you must understand that as you were raised into fine British society, Kala was raised with only bits and pieces of that instilled. She can cook and clean and act like a lady when necessary, but the jungle doesn't allow for the finer things of England to be part of the norm. It doesn't allow for the perfect ignorant housewife as you may have grown accustomed to. Our norm consists of swinging from vines and communicating with wildlife and alternating the chores. You can't expect her to bend to your every whim. Everyone does everything. Even Tarzan takes his turn. I didn't know what my children would have in their future, so I wanted both of them prepared for anything. Kala was raised to be a strong, independent woman because in the jungle you can't always rely on others. Tarzan and I agreed that with so many people coming to the port, we wanted her to have an education and be cultured so not to be the ignorant savage as Tarzan was when I had first arrived. That girl has acquired enough knowledge to have her own theories and experiments and can recite pieces of the Magna Carta. And as far as it sounding as bad as it did, you have to realize that she is not accustomed to comments. Flirtatious has of course been tackled before. Complete and utter demeaning is something else entirely that hasn't had to be talked about. She has lived here her entire life where we empowered her to do whatever her heart desired, whether that be hunting with Tarzan or studying biological tendencies with me and my father. We wanted her to be well rounded so no matter what happened or where she'd be, she would be ok. So far that has worked out. What surprises me is that we've had fewer issues with the random men who come here to reap us of resources than the man who had supposedly gotten to know her and came all the way to Africa for her."

"Mrs. Porter," his voice hushed, "I understand your concerns. I understood that she was much more educated than most English women. What I didn't realize is how much more proactive and bricky she is around here. That was what caught me off guard. I'm not accustomed to women, or anyone for that matter, swinging through the trees and wanting to be so active in her family's decisions."

"Dear, if you're going to live here, you'd better get used to it. And that still doesn't excuse the comments you made. That might be ok in England but I will not have it here. I have spent too long building her up for an ignorant man to tear her back down with a few comments."

"Not to criticize your parenting, Mrs. Porter, but I'd say she's not very stable if a few comments can rip her apart. Maybe it's about time for our young lady to face the facts. She is eighteen after all. Most people are thrust out into the cruel world by eighteen. I know I certainly was. Surely such a fine mind as yourself has spent plenty of time in the jungles of London. Why I hear you've been thrown to the lions of Cambridge. Why not show her what you learned from your experiences?"

"Because all that I learned is that most men are simply boisterous pigs."

Henry leaned back in his chair, cupping his hand over his mouth. He poked his mouth over the top of his hand. "I must say I've enjoyed your opinionated personality Mrs. Porter, but don't you have some cleaning to do? Not that Tarzan would know any better."

"Why I never!" She reached to slap the young man across his face.

He had narrowly caught her hand before it had reached its mark, pulling her out of her seat and closer into him. He also came out of his seat, meeting her face to face. "Or would you rather meet in bed first? You are a rather fine dish."

Jane jerked her hand from his grasp, going from moderately offended to infuriated. "You, young man are diving into shallow waters. Try not to hit your head. Everyone here will let you drown." Jane began to turn and walk away, only to be stopped by a hand gripping her jaw and jerking her back to him.

"Listen, _wench_ ,"

Jane tried to recoil back in disgust for the word. "I am no wench, you pompous fool!" She spat in his face.

"Mrs. Porter, you make that sound like a bad thing." He wiped the liquid from rolling down his face. "Might you forget that it was sex crazed war hawks that built the British Empire. It's only right to remain with what works." Henry brought her a little closer with each word.

"Name one."

"King Henry VIII. The man had six wives and was the father of the Royal Navy."

"The man wasn't sex crazed, only desperate for male heirs. Like most other monarchs of the time, he wasn't aware of the female competence for politics."

"Maybe, but the male heir would get it all anyway. That's the way it's always been, and always will be. Now, do you want to make this simple or difficult?"

"Nothing is ever simple in the jungle." She jerked her head side to side repeatedly trying to break free of his grasp.

Henry hiked one of her legs around his waist with his free hand laying her down on the wooden floor and went in to smash his lips against hers. He pinned her hands above her head, allowing his free hand to snake to the hem of where her blouse and skirt met. Henry looked down to see what his hand was revealing as it raised the clothing ever so little in its explorations of the peaks and valleys encompassing the much older woman's body. When he looked back up to continue his work, he instead received a forehead bashed into the bridge of his nose. His head kicked back, shifting him to his knees before keeling over in pain, both hands clinging to his nose, eyes welling up with tears. "God! Stupid girl!"

"You're not the first to think he could have his way with me. I find a good headshot is rather smashing in these situations." She grabbed a handful of his scalp and yanked his face up to see hers. "The boys will hear about this and so will Kala. You do not deserve her. You seemed like a nice young man, but not after this stunt. You are nothing but a podsnappery gal-sneaker. Unless you can prove to me otherwise, you will not be doing anything unsupervised in this jungle any time soon." She released him and walked out to the porch, leaving him to lick his wounds.

After several minutes, Henry joined Jane on the porch, leaning against the rail. "I'm sorry." His tone hushed and greatly humbled.

"I believe you've said that many a time, Mr. Wesson. You might try something different."

"What must I do to fix my undoings?"

"Well, you can start out by being honest and upfront with Kala _and_ the rest of her family. Tell her what you've done and your honest thoughts. If she still wants you around, that is her decision to make. If it were up to me, you would be on the first ship back to London."

"I see."

"They should be coming back any minute for tea. If you don't tell them, I most certainly will." He only nodded in understanding.

Roughly half an hour later the whole family came swinging in from the same general direction. "Oh God, I thought I left you at the waterfall." Anger still seeped through Kala's voice as she entered the home.

"Kala, would you please sit down and talk to me?"

"Why? So you can call me some other demeaning insult?"

Jane looked up from her tea set, "No, because I asked you to. Now, sit down. Listen to what the _boy_ has to say." Jane refused to let the word " _man"_ slip through her lips.

They all found seats, ready to listen intently to the new developments that Henry stood to present. "I know I made mistakes. I called you many things that you obviously are not. And I tried to take a flyer with your mother."

Kala's jaw dropped for a moment. "You tried to have sex with my mother?!"

"Gross!" Jonathan called. "Kala ok, but Mother? You really need to raise your standards."

"Jonathan!"

"What? He's what? Twenty? You're like 50."

"43, thank you very much." Jane droned.

Tarzan just sat in silence, both fists curled tight, nostrils flared, jaw clenched as tight as his fists. "You're not saying much."

Tarzan tackled the younger man to the floor. He rose from his position atop Henry, drumming on his chest with a groan. He continued to the porch and leaped to the ground.

"Um, I'm confused."

"It's a gorilla thing. Tarzan is interpreting this as you challenging him."

"Challenging? What the blazes for?"

"For me. And on a different level Kala. You see, if you can beat Tarzan in a fight, you can have your run of the place and whatever mate you want. You will be the alpha. If not, Tarzan will remain alpha and heaven help you. There's a reason he has survived and remained Lord of the Jungle this long. You should count yourself lucky. Ten years ago, he would've just finished you right here." Jane practically shoved Henry out the door.

"Um. Well then. I-I-I don't suppose we can t-t-talk this out? C-c-c-can we?" Henry stuttered out climbing down the tree. He was answered by being tackled to the ground. Henry flipped Tarzan over top of him, both shooting back to their feet in fighting stances. Tarzan's resembled more of a wrestling stance while Henry's was more boxing. "Alright. I will warn you, I trained several years in boxing."

"I'm afraid boxing won't help you here, Mr. Wesson," Jane called down from the porch. "Tarzan has fought everything from apes to leopards. Oh, and knocked out One Punch Mulligan if you'd remember."

They proceeded to circle each other, each waiting for the other to attack. Henry shuffled in and threw a jab. Tarzan dodged the punch, going straight in under it and driving his knee into the boy's chest repeatedly. After a few repetitions, Tarzan shifted behind the young man, placing him into a choke hold and dragging him backward so as not to get his footing. Henry would bite the older man's arm, gaining his freedom. He let loose another series of punches. Tarzan swept one of Henry's feet out from under him, throwing him face first to the ground in the process. Henry jerked his leg towards himself, bringing Tarzan close enough to get kicked by the opposite foot. Henry scrambled back to his feet only to be taken up like a sack of flour, his back slammed into Tarzan's knee, and tossed to the jungle floor. Henry let out a painful howl in too much pain to bounce back up like he had previously. Tarzan took his opportunity to finish the young man, driving both fists into Henry's chest repeatedly. Henry could feel his sternum and ribs cracking under the constant impacts and winced in pain with each new blow.

Jane, Kala, and Jonathan all came down from their birds-eye-view of the fight. "Tarzan! Tarzan, Darling, he's down! He's done!" Jane and Kala practically pried Tarzan from his victim. Henry struggled to breathe, remaining in his defenseless position.

Tarzan burst from his would-be restraints. "I never want to see you in this jungle again."

"Please, don't just leave me here," he coughed.

"Why shouldn't I? You touched Jane. I am not going to just stand by, I don't care how close you think you are to Kala."

"No this is a big misunderstanding!"

Jane intervened, "No, Mr. Wesson. That is not how we operate here. And if this is how you must learn, then so be it."

"Mother, you couldn't possibly be thinking of being so cruel. He wouldn't last one night."

"If the jungle wants him, he will survive," Tarzan continued. "No man who thinks he can speak the way he did to you and then do what he did to your mother will be allowed in my home anytime soon."

Kala looked from her father to Henry and back. She clenched her eyes shut and pursed her lips in painful thought. "I'm sorry Henry. Father's right." Very little remorse could be heard creaking into her voice. Kala stood as tall as she could muster, leaving her abuser behind.

"Kala! Don't leave me here! Please! I'm sorry! Please, just don't leave me here!" At first, he tried to follow them, soon losing the little strength he had left, pounding the ground with his fist in anger.


	3. Survival

_**Survival**_

Henry laid there until dusk overtook the jungle. Hearing the bug noises and animal yowls overtake the jungle, he had to make a decision to stay there or find shelter. If he stayed, he would surely be eaten. Every breath he took sent a stabbing pain through his chest. Henry stood up and began stumbling through the vegetation toward the trading post.

The trek seemed longer than usual, but was eventually concluded at the wooden dock. He rapidly slammed his hand against the door in slow triplets, hoping to get the Frenchman's attention. Dumont would eventually open the light door. "Monsieur, may I ask what you are doing at this hour?"

"I'm injured and I need help."

Dumont huffed a puff of air. "Come in, come in. You can lay down in the back room. What happened?"

"We had a bit of a spat. Tarzan may have beaten me like a rag doll."

"Aw. It's not the first time I've nursed injuries courtesy of your famed friend. I'm just going to examine the damage." Dumont removed Henry's shirt and started feeling his sides and stomach, noticing the forming bruises and swelling. Henry winced making short calls of pain when his ribs and chest were reached. "Does anything else hurt besides your ribs?"

"The middle of my chest and my head."

"Your chest, is it a deep pain or just on top there?"

"Top," he groaned

"I'd say cracked ribs and sternum. Possibly fractured vertebrae. All we can do is bandage you up and tell you not to be very active until you're completely healed. I know that might become difficult around here. Especially for the time frame we are looking at."

"What do you mean?"

"A typical fracture can take several weeks to properly heal. With the sheer number of fractures you have, it's a wonder you've made it this far."

"Whatever it takes. Do it."

"I'll be right back." Dumont left the small room, returning with medical wrap and pins. As he began his procedure, Dumont opted for a little small talk. "If I may be so bold, what was this little 'spat' about?"

"I may have made some derogatory comments about Kala's intelligence and skill set. And that led up to me trying to be intimate with Mrs. Porter."

"No wonder. Monsieur, one mistake many a man have made in this jungle, was to mess with any of the Porters, young or older. I assure you, Tarzan will not take this lightly."

"So I've discovered."

"No, unless you do something large enough to give him a change of heart, you'd better not be seen in his jungle."

Silence engulfed the room as Dumont finished wrapping the tender ribs. "Um, Monsieur Dumont, you wouldn't mind refraining from telling her family I'm here, would you? I don't want to find out what would happen if her father found out I'm still around."

"The Porters come in here rather frequently. It may not be the easiest thing to hide for very long. I will do my best."

"Thank you."


	4. Exile

_**Exile**_

The next several days went rather quietly. That was until Jane and Kala had gone to buy flour and sugar.

Henry and Dumont had been bantering back and forth all throughout the morning, Henry staying in the back room in case of surprise visitors. Jane and Kala paraded into the small lobby while Henry was in mid-sentence. "Good morning, Monsieur Dumont," Jane called. Henry quickly cut himself off at the new voices.

"Bonjour, Miss Porter. Can I help you with anything?"

"I'm afraid we recently ran out of sugar and our flour isn't far behind."

"Ah, not a problem at all. Just wait here a moment."

Dumont disappeared into the storage room. Hearing the voices, Henry did his best to keep the boards from squeaking under him. "That was a rather strange noise we heard as we came in. Sounded like someone was talking."

"Oh, I assure you, Madame, I'm the only one here."

Henry shifted his position on the bed, the boards releasing a long, loud squeak. "What was that?"

"Oh, you know how this old building creaks. It's a wonder it doesn't just fall down one of these days."

"Yes," Kala giggled. "Mother I'm just going to look around." Jane nodded her approval as Kala began meandering towards the clothing displays.

Henry was struggling to hold in a sneeze. He sniffled and snorted, keeping it in to the best of his ability. Little did he know that Kala was right outside of his door, hearing every sound he made.

Kala could hear the noises, but wasn't quite sure as to the source. She began to nose toward the door in curiosity. Noticing her mother and Dumont were still locked in conversation, Kala carefully slipped through the door. She spun around to discover Henry with a look of fear across his face. Kala drew in a long, slow, aggravated breath looking for the words to say while Henry put his finger to his lips in a panicked motion. "Sshhh, sshhh! Please, don't say anything!" He frantically whispered.

"What are you doing? How are you here?" Aggravation crossed her features with a fierce reciprocation of the whisper crossing her lips.

"I stumbled here in the middle of the night and begged for help. It was the grace of God that Dumont said I could stay here. Please, don't tell anyone I'm here."

"Why not?"

"The last thing I need right now is your family hunting me down like a leopard would its next meal. Just let me lay low, at least until I can move around better."

"You don't know that they'd do that."

"Oh really? Because your father seemed quite content with trying to kill me."

"Okay. I will give that. But why should I not rat you out right now after all you've done?"

"Because we both know, that deep down, you don't want them to kill me, do you?" He relented in more of a statement than a question.

"You don't know that."

"But I do. Otherwise, you wouldn't have brought me here. You wouldn't have let me romance you into dinner after dinner. You have more invested into me than you're willing to admit." Kala was caught in a stalemate. She couldn't deny there was still something between her and the young man. Despite those feelings, she still felt anger and frustration for his obsolete ways and thought process. "Please, tell me how wrong I am." _He's not_. "Tell me how you're ready to throw me to the leopards." _I would never do that to him._ "Tell me how I have offended your entire family."

"You have," she sneered.

"Your father is an ignorant savage. He knows nothing of honor and offense." Henry held nothing back of his retaliation.

"Obviously he does if he nearly killed you because you disrespected me _and_ my mother."

"True. But you stopped him."

"What was I supposed to do?"

"If you really hated me, I wouldn't be here, now would I? Why not help me? If nothing else, don't make me stay in this little room by myself."

Kala stared at him for a moment. "Let us get one thing straight. I stopped my father, not because of my feelings toward you, but because it was the right thing to do. I one hundred percent support my family's frustration with you, but I saw no reason for you to die in such a manner. Do not confuse my morality for compassion." She stormed back out to rejoin her mother.

That evening, Kala sat quietly in her candlelit bedroom with a novel, thinking more about the day's events than that of the book. _He deserved what he got._ She took in a deep sigh. _But it's not right to make him suffer._ She flipped to the next page. _Even if I did want to help him, how would I go about it? Why am I even thinking about this? There is no way I could possibly do anything to help him. I have no reason to help that fool after what he said. No reason… except maybe his dreamy, blue eyes. Or his somewhat chiseled anterior ventral muscles…_ Her melting expression snapped to determination on her features. _No! Kala, snap out of it! Physical pleasure is no reason to help him, no matter how magical it felt. Even if I may never experience it again. Gah, damnit Henry!_

Night after night, Kala would sneak out to see Henry and check on his condition, ultimately confirming Henry's observations. One night she had an extra shadow following her from her family's tree house to the trading post. Jonathan had noticed Kala leaving and coming back late at night. On this particular evening, Jonathan decided to see where she had been going. His mind pondered several scenarios when they reached the trading post, but one really stood out to him. "I swear if she's got a thing with Dumont, I'm going to throw up." Kala was welcomed at the front door, but Jonathan decided not to push his luck. Instead, he peeked through a window and watched the pair go to the back room. Jonathan slithered to the back of the building, hoping to find windows to the desired location. He noticed an opening with light coming out of it. When he peered inside he found Henry bandaged up and Kala placing a kiss on his cheek. "You traitor!" he shouted gaining everyone's attention. "Oops." He turned and ran back to the tree house.

"Oh God. I'm dead. You're dead."

"Or I can just go somewhere else until your father is put at bay."

"You're not exactly in a condition to move."

"Knowing Tarzan, if he thinks you're here he will search every nook and cranny of this place. I do have one place, however, even Tarzan doesn't know about. Come with me." Dumont led them to the middle of his store and found a pry bar. He jammed it into the wood below them and opened a latch in the floor. A flight of stairs was revealed, leading the group down to a cellar full of supplies.

"What is this place?"

"It is my surplus cellar. I keep a little bit of everything down here in case of robbery, storm, or attack. You never know what the day will bring out here. And of course, if I run out of something in the store, I can get it from down here until the next shipment arrives. Henry can stay down here until the trouble passes."

Kala hugged the much older man. "I think Mother was wrong about you, Mr. Dumont."

He pulled away. "Your mother spoke of me?"

"Yes, I believe she said you are nothing but a snobby store owner with connections and that you like to coquet with her… A lot."

"Oh please, it's been years… Since my French charm worked. Of course in her younger years, your mother was much more of umm how-do-you-say a wagtail than she lets on." Dumont questioned the use of the word. Some English words he had heard before but was not quite sure of the usage of them.

Kala grimaced, "I'm feeling a little over informed. I suppose I'll go be damage control for a while, see what Jonathan's done with his new information." Kala left the trading post, but hesitated to enter the home. Rather than go in, Kala waited and listened to the conversation taking place.

"Where have you been?"

"Why don't you ask your little princess when she gets back?"

"What are you talking about? She's in her room."

"No. You can check, she's not in there."

"Well then, where is she?"

"The trading post."

"Doing what? And what were _you_ doing there this time of night?"

"I noticed Kala had been leaving really late over the last few nights. Tonight, I followed her to see where she had been sneaking off to. She and Dumont have been helping Henry this whole time."

"Oh, that's preposterous. The leopards probably got him."

"I never heard any cries, did you?" Both adults were silenced by the realization. "She has been hiding him in the back room of the trading post and sneaking out every night to see him."

"And what do you suppose we do about it?"

"You're her mother, discipline her. Lock her in her room. Something!" The young man screeched.

"Dear, she's an adult. I'm not going to lock her in her room," Jane retorted in a much calmer voice.

"Well then, what is keeping her from making stupid decisions? You can not tell me that you are ok with this!"

"Believe me, it feels like a dash of salt in an open wound. But, how would you like it if I locked you in your room like a child?"

"That's the point! You don't make someone do something they would enjoy for a punishment!"

Creaks caught the group's attention from outside the door. Jonathan broke away to find the source of the disturbance. Expecting a monkey of some sort, Jonathan was surprised to discover Kala jumping over the distant railing. "Great. There she goes."

"Well don't just stand there, go after her!"

"I'm not chasin' after her this time a night."

"Yet you would follow her blindly earlier this evening. Tarzan, go after your daughter. Jonathan, if she comes back don't let her leave."

"You just said you're not gonna hold her here."

"Not as a punishment. I do want to speak with her. I can't accomplish that if she's off God knows where."

Aggravation crossed Jonathan and Tarzan's features before Tarzan swung into the treetops. Every little rustle of leaves was thoroughly investigated in hopes of finding the young woman.

Oddly enough, Tarzan had met his match. Kala had learned the jungle clearings and crevices almost as well as he in her eighteen short years of life. She had started west toward the mountains, careful to leave just enough trace for her tracker to keep the general direction in the darkness of the night. Circling back to the treehouse, Kala arrived back at the treehouse at day break.

Kala maintained her original stealth approach to the aging yet sturdy building. Her brother climbed out from the house's shadowed underbelly, clamping one hand over her mouth, free hand reaching to embrace her in a choke hold. "Sorry, sis. You're not goin' much of anywhere. Mom's orders," He half whispered. She bit his hand, him biting his lip, recoiling in pain.

"Since when have you ever listened to Mother?" She reciprocated the whisper, fleeing her brother's grasp.

"Since I actually agree with her. Kala, do you not understand what he's done? What you'd be saying you're ok with by allowing him back into our home?"

"It's still not right to just leave him to die."

"I'm not saying you're wrong. But we both know Mom is law. Even Dad doesn't want him around after his last stunt."

"Who gave them the right? Hm? Who gave them the right to say who lives and who dies?"

"No one gave it to us- we earned it." A new voice broke in. Jane revealed herself from the shadowed doorway. "He earned it when he spent his childhood earning the respect of gorillas and then decided he had the animals under his thumb enough to keep me here and raise the two of you." The gentle breeze blew Jane's blouse just enough to reveal the scarring across her chest and arms. "I also had to earn my place, not only as Tarzan's wife, but as a mother. Granted, I had Tarzan to help me and it wasn't without a few hiccups along the way," she rubbed the scars running up her arms. "I have protected you two under so many circumstances, from leopards, stampedes, poachers looking for advantages over your father. He has saved me from many a danger, and many a threat that I couldn't quite handle on my own. Many from the outside world. But your father _has_ earned his position and so have I."

"Then would you mind elaborating? Because I still do not understand why you can simply allow sentencing that man to his death? Never once have you allowed father to make such rash decisions, let alone condoned them!"

Jane thought long and hard, pursing her lips and swallowing hard before providing an answer. "Back when I had just gotten married to your father, before you two were around, these two gentlemen had come into port with several natives. They had come for pelts and elephant ivory. Tarzan had butted heads with them repeatedly until they finally kidnapped me in hopes of manipulating him. These scars are from where they had tied chains around my wrists and tied me to a pole until they wanted me. I rubbed my wrists raw trying to escape until one day they started bleeding. Every day after that the wound would reopen itself somehow or another, whether by vain escape attempts or the roughness of my handlers." She directed their attention to her wrists, then her chest. "This was from a whip they had used for intimidation. One of them was cracking it and hit me square in the chest in the process. Of course, they didn't care. I was a toy that didn't work, so I was played with until I was of use. And of course, I have several marks on my back where they used the very same whip as motivation and punishment. It wasn't a pleasant experience by any measure. The bruises alone were easily as large and as deep as dinner plates. I had experienced scolding and shunning at Cambridge, but nothing compared to how I was used and abused by those two men. Kala, I never want you to end up in the same position that I once was. I don't mean being the first woman in Cambridge, either. I mean being the toy for a man who thinks of you as nothing more than just that- a toy, a multi-purpose tool. And that is becoming exactly what you'd be whilst under his thumb."

Kala sighed. "Then ship him back to England. Don't almost kill him and then leave him for the leopards to finish off. I don't care what he's done, no man deserves that."

"You say that, until you meet the one who would defile you in every way possible if given the chance. Believe me, I've had more than one of those in my life. They're the ones that go right in for what they want, and the ones that play with you - get to know you, get close to you. Then, when you're on the brink of as far as you can go but you're not quite ready, and he won't take no for an answer. Don't put yourself in that situation when it's so obvious it's coming! You're too good- too intelligent- for that. If he can't see that, he doesn't need you any more than an elephant needs a fork."

"I still stand by my word. I will not stand by and let that young man die in this jungle."

"If you can't listen to a voice of reason, Kala, then you may as well join him."


	5. The Student and the Teacher

_**Student and the Teacher**_

Kala started back to the trading post, keeping a stone face as she left her family behind. Halfway there, she broke down, her emotions ripping at her insides. "What have I done?" She cried, tears formed streams down her face. "I'm alienating myself over an ignorant boy. What should they care? According to them, it's not like I'm important enough or strong enough to take over the jungle. I'm only intelligent enough to fool the Lord of the jungle into a wild goose chase. But, it's not right for Henry to die because of us and our neglect. I know he's done some bad things and said things just as bad, but still, that shouldn't make it right. And I'm sure as soon as Father gets back and hears what happened, he'll either come after Henry and me or he'll let Mother's decision stand. No, he'll let us be. It's not in his nature to track deserters. But should I let Henry stay at the trading post where I know he's safe, or bring him with me where I can keep an eye on him? I know staying here isn't helping anybody." Kala pulled herself together and continued her trek to the trading post.

Upon entering the cabin, Dumont led her down to Henry's temporary underground home, shutting the door behind her. Henry embraced her, "Darling, I'm so glad you're safe."

Kala shoved him away. "Don't 'darling' me. Just because I saved you, doesn't mean I'm pleased with you by any means. Because of you, I was exiled from my home. Now I'm leaving you the choice. Either come with me and learn our ways or stay here and pray that this all blows over. I think it would do you some good to learn our ways if you plan on _living_ here."

Henry slumped to his knees and took one of Kala's much more callused hands into both of his. "Then teach me," he pleaded.

Kala paused a moment, releasing a deep sigh. "Well step one: no trying to sleep with my mother. That is one thing that simply will not cut it. Step two: we are getting out of here and learning survival skills. Maybe in the process, you'll learn why we are the way we are."

She turned her back on him and started back up the staircase, Henry in tow. The pair breached the tree line by about a mile or two and stopped for a second, Henry gripping his ribs in pain. "Kala, might we slow down the pace a tad? My ribs aren't quite accustomed to such strenuous activity."

She whipped her attention around to him with a strong glare, "For one, we are walking. This is the least 'strenuous' activity we have at the moment. For two, do you have a single concept as to what is in this part of the jungle? I can guarantee that you don't want to be someone's lunch, in which case I highly suggest you give yourself _and_ your aching ribs a swift kick in the rear. The jungle doesn't care if you're injured. The jungle doesn't care if you're still learning. The jungle doesn't care if you do or don't have someone to protect you. You have to keep your eyes open and senses on high if you want any hope of surviving. Do you want to survive?" Henry simply nodded. "Then shut yer yap and keep up!"

Henry was mildly offended at first to have a young woman with the gall to speak to him in such a manner. He quickly reminded himself of his current position and continued to follow Kala's lead to the best of his ability.


	6. The Return

_**The Return**_

Several months had passed since Kala's banishment. For Kala, that was months of festering aggravation and preparation - preparation to reattain her place among her family. She had already thought out what needed to be done. She knew she would not be simply welcomed back. She would have to challenge her father for her place back. To take down Tarzan in a fight would take preparation and Kala was aware of that.

Though most of her time was focused on teaching and protecting Henry, the remainder of her time was spent building and toning the muscle that had built up over years in the jungle, as well as honing her fighting abilities. Kala was no longer the dainty young woman Jane had raised her to be. Her physique had transformed from the slender figure like her mother's to a slightly more built version, closer to that of her father's.

Kala and Henry had spent a majority of their exile traveling around the jungle that Kala knew well, careful not to stay in one location for too long, and had been making their way back to the treehouse. Though they had arrived several days prior, Kala decided to do some scouting and observe her family a bit before revealing the new presence. She observed their lack of concern. Few comments were made regarding her well being, though she did catch one that she would never forget. Jonathan and Jane had been standing out on the porch watching the sun rise. "I miss her," Jonathan whispered.

"This was her choice," Jane replied, her voice soured.

"No, it really wasn't. You know when she sets her mind on something, she will not give up on it no matter how aggravated it makes her. You know that she has her mind set on doing the right thing and you still required her to make that choice."

"And she chose him."

"Because you weren't mature enough to understand her point of view."

"You were the one that wanted her punished. Now, she is and you're sympathizing."

"Because you go from one extreme to the other like a child."

Jane clenched her jaw in defeat and swallowed her pride. "You're right. I have been a tad immature in dealing with Kala's undoings. I should not have allowed your father to leave Henry to die. My experiences clouded my judgement, yes. But you also have to realize, I have had more experience with men like Henry than you and Kala will ever have."

"What do you mean 'men like Henry'?"

"Men who were born into English society. Men who are taught from day one that they are entitled to a home, food on the table, and a wife to put it there and produce children. You can't be like that in the jungle. You can't always guarantee any of that. There isn't a maid to clean up after you, or a market to get your food from. You and Kala were raised not knowing any different. I had to adjust a little bit. I had no clue how to cook a snake or leopard. Your father wouldn't even eat cooked meat for the longest time because he never knew any different. He had to adjust to me, just as I had to adjust to him. We were able to compromise. However after observing how Henry's so buried in his ways, I'm still not sure if he's capable of that compromise."

Kala found herself tearing up as she climbed down from her hiding spot and back to Henry.

The next day Kala would make their presence known.

"Dear, remind me why you have to fight your father if you want to go home?"

"It's a gorilla behavior that Father never grew out of. Once a gorilla leaves its family, it is looked upon as an outsider. So if they are ever seen again, they must fight the alpha. Wait here until all the fun is over, and believe me you'll know when we're done."

She casually glided through the shrubbery and climbed to the porch, gaining the attention of the inhabitants. "Father. I want my home back. I'm ready to fight in order to get it."

"Fine," was his only response. The pair drummed their chests with an intimidating grunt before leaping to the ground. "Your challenge. Your move."

Kala proceeded to do a front flip over Tarzan, catching his chin between her hands and slamming him into the ground face first. Tarzan bounced up to his feet. The pair interlocked a few moments, hands on the others shoulders. Kala slid her hands up to her father's head, slamming it on her knee and kicking him backwards. Tarzan stumbled at first, soon regaining his footing. The next charge the woman made was swiftly avoided with a roll to the side and a leap into her side, taking her to the ground. Tarzan reached above his head to bring his fists down on top of her. He was met with two feet to his nose before the fists could reach their target. Kala popped to her feet as Tarzan wiped some of the blood from his nose. She bounced into a handstand, locking her legs around his head and dragging him to the ground, ending in her sitting on his abdomen.

"I'm done. I refuse to harm my little girl any further." Kala nodded and helped her father to his feet. Tarzan pulled her into an embrace, "I'm glad you're home."

"I'm glad to be home." Kala escaped the embrace and climbed to the porch where her mother and brother were waiting. Kala locked eyes with the older woman for a moment. The tension of the silence was thick enough to be cut with a knife. "What? No, 'I'm glad you're home, sweetheart'? Nothing?"

Jane rushed into an embrace, tucking the younger woman's head into her chest. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart," she wept. "I'm so sorry I put us all through this. I don't know what I was thinking. I was so angry and I said things I shouldn't have. I'm so glad you came home. I missed you so much."

"I missed you too, Mother. I'm the one that couldn't listen. But I refuse to be overlooked. I don't want to be the heir that gets overlooked because I'm a girl and at this point that is exactly what I am."

Jane pulled away from her daughter in confusion. "What in good heavens are you talking about?"

"Father's title. If something happens to Father, I should get his title because I am oldest, but instead Jonathan will get it because he is a man. Hell, he isn't even a _man._ He is a _boy_ who thinks he's a man. I have proved that I am more than capable of taking Father's place." Kala's frustration became more apparent with every word. Jane only mimicked Kala's frustration.

"Kala, I agree with you. And so does your father. My only concern with promising you the position at this point is what if you decide to follow a similar path that I did. The commitment associated with your father's title would hold you back from your full potential. You wouldn't be able to go off to school and learn all there is to learn and research because you would have to stay here and do your job. And that's not just a rule for you either. That applies to your brother as well. It's hard telling where either of you will be in five years, let alone how you will spend the rest of your lives. I'm not about to force either of you to stay here if you want to have more promising futures elsewhere." Jane's voice came down exponentially in volume and she took Kala's face into her hands. "You've been made aware of my fears regarding you going off on your own to God knows where in the world. If that's what your heart is set on, then so be it. If your heart is set on Lord of the Jungle, so be it. Your father and I both believe that you are far more intellectually active than to stay in the jungle by yourself."

"Mother, so were you. You could have gone back to London and done so much with the research you and grandfather completed when you came. Instead you stayed and had a lot of intercourse with an ape man."

"That 'ape man' is your father. And at the time it may not have been the brightest decision of my career, but I would never even glance at a world where I had made the opposite decision. I believe you face a similar decision with Henry. Either send him home or make this his home. If this is to be his home you had better find a better bed for him than the floor."

"Does that mean what I think it does?" Henry came crawling up over the banister.

"Henry can stay. You are an adult now. It is your decision to make as long as you make smart decisions. If it gets to the point where I have to make the decision for you, he won't be going home and there won't be any of this sneaking off to help him." The statement was more towards Henry than Kala, but Kala answered anyways.

"Understandable."

"Kala, Mrs. Porter, if I may be so bold. I have learned a lot over the past several months and not just from Kala. Actually, I went as far as to buy something from Dumont before our little forced safari." He reached down into his pocket to retrieve a simple yet splendid diamond ring. "And I would like to make a promise right here, right now. Kala, I vow to protect you to the best of my ability. Although in most cases it'll probably be the other way around. I know I'm not perfect but I promise you that I will certainly do my best to turn a new leaf and fit in around here a hell of a lot more than I have been. And you had better believe that I will provide the best example of love that I am capable of if you would do me the honor of being my wife."

"If you mess up too badly, Mother can feed you to the leopards?" Kala giggled.

"If I screw up that badly, I personally give my permission for your mother to feed me to the leopards. So what do you say?"

"I say… Yes."

Tarzan swung up to the porch as if right on cue. "Tarzan, darling, it appears we're going to need a bigger treehouse."

A/N: podsnappery- This term describes a person with a "wilful determination to ignore the objectionable or inconvenient, at the same time assuming airs of superior virtue and noble resignation."

Gal-sneaker- An 1870 term for "a man devoted to seduction."

Bricky- Brave or fearless. "Adroit after the manner of a brick," Forrester writes, "said even of the other sex, 'What a bricky girl she is.'"

Coquet- to try to attract the attention and admiration of men for mere self-gratification; flirt.


End file.
